STERLING — — Regardless of how much fun you have on vacation, it is generally nice to return home.

Nothing quite beats the feel of your own bed, or the comfort of those familiar surroundings.

The same was perhaps doubly true for residents of Sterling Living Center, who spent more than a week at a facility in Fort Collins due to concerns over possible flooding and the resulting no flush order that affected the city for a full seven days.

On Wednesday, they came home to a celebration, complete with a "Welcome Home" banner, balloons and special treats.

The residents evacuated on Sunday, Sept. 15. While about eight went home with family members, the remaining 36 were transported to Sava Care's Spring Creek facility in Fort Collins, along with SLC staff members. All told, about 17-20 Sterling staff members helped care for the residents while they were displaced.

Greg Bretsch, administrator for Sava Senior Care, said the decision to leave town wasn't made lightly. But in the end he's glad it's what they decided to do. He said the no flush order was taxing enough for the general public; it would have been even more difficult for the residents in the health care setting. The residents' families also appreciated the decision, he said.

Advertisement

The move was made easier by the fact that the Fort Collins site was large enough to accommodate all of the evacuated residents and they each had their own room. It was well-supplied, so there weren't any special orders for food due to the temporary influx, and Highway 14 stayed open through the flood ordeal so transportation wasn't an issue.

While staff said the residents seemed to enjoy their visit, interacting with new people at activities like bingo and basking in the mountain view, they were also glad to come home.

Kenneth Jay said the experience made him grateful for the blessings in his life. "When you wake up tonight (at home)... it's the best dream ever," he said. He called the flood and evacuation experience eye-opening. "Incredible things can happen."

He laughed as a train went by on the nearby tracks, sounding its familiar horn. "When you hear the train, you know you're home."

Other residents echoed his feelings. Jim said he missed his TV and his bed. Marjorie was glad to be able to use her own phone.

Eyvonne, who also celebrated her birthday Wednesday, said simply, "I like being home."

Article Comments

We reserve the right to remove any comment that violates our ground rules, is spammy, NSFW, defamatory, rude, reckless to the community, etc.

We expect everyone to be respectful of other commenters. It's fine to have differences of opinion, but there's no need to act like a jerk.

Use your own words (don't copy and paste from elsewhere), be honest and don't pretend to be someone (or something) you're not.

Our commenting section is self-policing, so if you see a comment that violates our ground rules, flag it (mouse over to the far right of the commenter's name until you see the flag symbol and click that), then we'll review it.